Apparatus for handling articles



" Ja n.3 ,1 933. F.JAEGER 1,892,670

, APPARATUS FOR HANDLING ARTICLES Filed Aug. 22, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR Fred Jneyer' BY JMM 'ATTORNEY 7 Jan. 3, 1933. JAEGER 1,892,670

APPARATUS FOR HANDLING AR I'c -Es Filed Aug. 22, 1928 V 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENT .Frec Jaey BY MM ATTORNEY 0 shipping platform.

Patented Jan. 3, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFI/C'E.

FRED JAEGER, OF RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS,

TO THE PATENT AND LICENSING CORPORATION, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, A

CORPORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS APPARATUS FOR HANDLING ARTICLES Application'filed August 22, 1928. Serial No. 301,297.

This invention relates to apparatus for han dling articles particularly of cylindrical or roll form. My invention finds one particular adaptation in the asphalt roofing industry wherein relatively large and heavy rolls of fabricated roofing are required to be handled through various stages of preparation for shipment.

and coated and mineral surfaced roofing material 1n long contlnuous sheets wound into a roll of convenient size and provided with a suitable wrapper of paper or the like. This wrapperas customarily provided extends only to the ends of the roll and separate facing sheets of muslin or similar material are secured on the end faces ofthe rolls to protect thesame and, also to provide a closure for the central opening through theroll within which roofing nails, roofing cement, and other appurtenances are placed for shipment with the roll. roll through these separate stages of preparation for shipment, it is found necessary to carry on some of these operations in upper stories of the factory, the rolls being then delivered from this point of treatment to the next, or to a storage space below or to the My lnvention has for its object the provision of means for automatically transferring the rolls from one point at which they are delivered, to a conveyor for delivering the rollsto a lower level. My invention has as another object, the provision of automatic means of the character indicated, functioning also to automatically separate rolls from a group so that they may be delivered to the conveyor one by one in orderly fashion and with a minimum of wear upon various workin parts.

e invention consists in the novel combination and arrangement of parts as will be more fully hereinafter described, and as illus- These rolls may consist of. asphalt saturated felt or asphalt saturated In order to carry the Figure 4 is a view in plan ofthe mechanism shown in Figures 1 to 3, and Flgure 5 is an enlarged view, in end elevat'ion, of my improved mechanism in substanpackaging of the rolls hasbe en completed:

It is' to be understood, of course, that my inventionis not limited to transferring rolls which have been completely packaged, butv may also be utilizedfor conveying from one level to a lower level, rolls at any stage of their preparation. The rolls are delivered by the conveyor 12 to an inclined frame or table l4 down which they will roll by gravity. By my invention I provide means for automatically carrying the rolls one by one from the end of the table 14 and delivering the same to a vertical conveyor 20, which is adapted to carry the rolls to the desired lower level. The conveyor 2Q comprises a belt 21 passing. around an upperpulley 22 in the direction shown by the arrows, and a similar pulley (not shown) at a lower level than the pulley 22. The belt 21 has fixed thereto, at suitably spaced points, pairs ofarms or brackets 24 across which the rolls are supported as they are being carried downwardly bythe conveyor 2).

' The mechanism for transferring the rolls from the end of the table 14 to the conveyor 20 may comprise as shown, a rotatable frame member 30 constructed of a pair of similarly shaped end plates 32 fixed to an idle shaft 34, which latter is mounted for rotation in the bearings 36 secured by brackets 38 to the sup porting frame or table 14. The end lates 32 are each formed of a series of radial gers 40, one edge 41 of which may be said to'be concavular and the other edge 42 of which may be described as convexular, Connecting rods 44 are secured to the corresponding ends of the fingers 4 1 of the end plates-"32. As

will be seen from the drawings, the bearings 36 are located in the brackets 38 at a distance spaced from the ends of the supporting frame or table substantially midway between the ends of the table and the outer ends of the brackets 24. The shaft 34 at its end protrudes beyond the bearing brackets and has fixed at one end thereof a friction pulley 46 and at the opposite end thereof a stop device 48. The friction pulley 46 may comprise merely a wheel 47 formed with a friction surface on its periphery surrounded by and maintained in frictional engagement with a 'wear collar 49 consisting of a split metallic ring the extremities of which are secured as at 50, to a supporting bar 51 rigidly mounted upon the side of the frame 14. The stop device 48 may comprise a toothed wheel 52 secured to the shaft 34 at its end opposite to that carrying the friction pulley, and a spring pawl 53 fastened as at 54 to a supporting bar 55 projecting outwardly from and rigidly secured to the side of the frame member 14.

In operation, the rotatable transferring frame 30 is adapted to be automatically actuated by the supporting bars or brackets 24 during the continued movement of theconveyor 20. As will be seen from the drawings, the connecting rods 44 of the rotatable frame member are successively contacted by the lower surface of the brackets 24 during which periodof contact the frame member is adapted to be rotated a fraction of a revolution. The relative position of the elements as contact is first made between a pair of brackets 24 and one of the rods 44 is shown in Figure 3. In this position, one of the rolls 10a is shown as being carried in one of the troughs formed between the adjoining edges of a pair of fingers 32. As the conveyor continues to travel downwardly, thereby forcing the frame member 30 to continue its rotation in the direction shown by the arrow, the roll 10a will fall, as shown in Figure 1, by gravity, from its trough on the frame'member, onto the cooperating supporting bars 24,.to be carried thereon downwardly to the desired point of storage or shipment. Between the time that each pair of bars 24 on the conveyor 20 leaves its cooperating connecting rod 44 of the frame member 30, and the time that the sudceeding pair of supporting bars 24 comes into contact with a succeeding connecting bar 44, the friction pulley 46 will restrain the frame member from further rotation, so that the following roll carried thereon will not be discharged untimely therefrom or delivered to the conveyor in improper relation to the succeeding supporting brackets 24. It will be seen that as the frame member 30 is thus rotated, the successive pairs of fingers 40 with their connecting rods 44 pass upwardly in the space between the sides of the frame member 14 and between the confronting surfaces of the rolls lying near the end of the supporting frame, should there be an accumulation of rolls at this point, and in this way, effectively separate the rolls and pick them up one by one from the supporting frame, regardless of the number that may be lying there ready for transferal to the vertical conveyor 20. The stop device 48; hereinbefore described, is adapted to prevent retrogressive movement of the frame member 80 that may occur due to a roll being disposed to the rearward side of the center of the shaft 34 during the interval of time that elapses between successive contacts of the supporting brackets 24 and the cooperating rods 44.

It will be understood of course that while I have described my invention as being utilized in the handling of rolls of roofing material, I do not intend to limit the invention in this respect, as obviously, the features thereof are capable of use in numerous other relations and in handling numerous other articles.

I claim as my invention:

1. Mechanism of the character described comprising in combination, a substantially horizontal chute, a vertical conveyor having spaced supporting bracketsextending at an angle to the line of travel thereof and means actuable by direct contact with the free ends of said supporting brackets for automatically transferring articles from the horizontal chute to the vertical conveyor, said means comprising a rotatable carrier having a plurality of troughs for receiving the articles insuccession from the horizontal chute.

2. Mechanism of the character described, comprising in combination, a substantially horizontal chute, a vertical conveyor having spaced supporting brackets rigidly mounted thereon-and extending at an angle to the line of travel thereof, rotatable means formed with a plurality of troughs, said brackets being arranged to successively strike a portion of said rotatable means to actuate the same for automatically transferring'articles from the horizontal chuteto the vertical conveyor, said rotatable means being adapted to individually separate the articles from any group that may accumulate at the point of delivery from the horizontal chute, and, means for preventing retrogressive movement of said rotatable means.

3. Mechanism of the character described, comprising in combination, .a substantially horizontal chute, a Vertical conveyor, a transfer device interposed between the chute and conveyor, said device comprising a pair of end plates mounted near the ends of an idle shaft and having radially extending fingers, the extremities of corresponding fingers on the end plates being connected by rods substantially parallel to the shaft and means on said vertical conveyor for contacting the connecting'rods whereby to effect intermittent rotation of said device.

4. Mechanism of the character described, comprising in combination, a substantially horizontal chute, a vertical conveyor having spaced supporting brackets rigidly mounted thereon and extending at an angle to the line of travel thereof, rotatable means formed with a plurality of troughs actuable by direct contact with the free ends of said sup-' porting brackets for automatically transferring'articles from the horizontal chute to the vertical conveyor, said rotatable means being adapted to individually separate the articles from any r'oup that may accumulate at the point 0% delivery from the horizontal (31111139,) and means for intermittently arresting the motion of said rotatable means.

5. Mechanism of they character described,

comprising in combination, a substantially horizontal chute, a vertical conveyor, a trans.

fer device interposed between the chute and. conveyor, said device comprising a pair of end plates mounted near the ends of an idle shaft and having radially extending fingers,

the extremities-of corresponding fingers on the end plates being connected'by rods substantially parallel to the shaft and means on said vertical conveyor for contacting the connectin rods whereby to effect'intermittent rotation of said device, said means being adapted to receive an article withdrawn by the transfer device from the end of thehorizontal chute.

6. Mechanism of the character described, comprising in combination, a substantially horizontal chute, a vertical conveyor, a transfer deviceinterposed between the chute and conveyor, said device comprising a pair of end plates mounted near the ends of an idle shaft and having radially extending fingers, the extremities of corresponding fingers on the end plates being connected by rods substantially parallel to the shaft, means on said vertical conveyor for contacting the connecting rods whereby to efl'ect intermittent rotation of said device, said means being adapted to receive an article withdrawn by the transfer device from the end of the horizontal chute, and means for preventing free rotation of said device between successive contacts of said means on the vertical conveyor with the connecting rods.

FRED JA'EGER. 

